Despite facing personal and business-related challenges, Vámonos Tours owner Jorge Pardo and his colleagues are moving forward with scheduled—and redirected—tours.
Vámonos Tours specializes in providing student groups with cultural and language-immersion programs throughout the Caribbean, as well as in Latin America, Spain and the U.S. By continually assessing and reassessing the damage to Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands, Pardo says Vámonos has worked to accommodate its clients.
“We will resume our Puerto Rico tours beginning Nov. 7,” Pardo says. “We expect all of our hotel properties to have water and power, and the vast majority of tourist attractions will take precedence in terms of restoration of power.” He is quick to add that the company puts a priority on safety and will only use hotels that are fully operational.
Along with cultural, nature and adventure excursions in Puerto Rico, the company’s tours have always included a service project, a feature Pardo says will be especially timely in the months ahead.
“More than ever, I want my students to help with hurricane-relief efforts, to chat with locals about their experiences during the storm, and, certainly, to still enjoy the beauty of our island.”
Vámonos also offers five- and seven-day programs in Martinique for French language students, and those tours have already resumed. “Martinique is fully functional, and it’s the ideal place for students to study French in a warm, tropical setting,” Pardo says.
Itineraries on that island include sailing lessons, dance instruction, a Creole cooking class and guided tours of Martinique’s rainforests and waterfalls.
The company’s programs to Cuba, set to resume in October, were complicated by a statement from the U.S. Department of State warning citizens not to travel to Cuba due to illnesses suffered by U.S. diplomats. Pardo is offering alternative destinations.
“We are advising all of our groups booked for Cuba to consider Costa Rica, which is one of the safest and most peaceful countries in the Western Hemisphere,” he says. “If you would prefer a destination other than Costa Rica, we have Spanish-immersion tours to Spain, Panama, Mexican-heritage San Antonio, Cuban-heritage Miami and Puerto Rico.”
Along with attending to Vámonos staff members and clients, Pardo has also focused on helping the people of Puerto Rico.
In late September he set up a GoFundMe page to provide food and supplies to the island’s orphanages, rural schools, nursing homes and soup kitchens. Donations to the Vámonos Hurricane Relief Fund are administered by Pardo and his staff.
“Nothing will be handled by any third party,” Pardo writes on the page. “We don’t play around. Your funds become supplies delivered personally by Vámonos.”
To get updates on the company’s programs, visit vamonostours.com or email Jorge Pardo. To make a donation to the company’s relief fund, visit gofundme.com/vamonos-hurricane-relief-fund.
Top photo: Vámonos staff members with the groceries they purchased for Puerto Ricans in need.
